Nozzle for powder fire extinguisher



Feb. 12, 195? F. B. ALLEN NOZZLE FOR POWDER FIRE EXTINGUISHER 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 21, 1952 INPENTOR FMNKfiALAE/V A T TOR/V151 F.B. ALLEN NOZZLE FOR POWDER FIRE EXTINGUISHER Feb. 12, 1957 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 21, 1952 INVENTOR. FRANK 5. AL 1. EN 3Y6!ATTORNL'X NOZZLE FOR POWDER FIRE EXTINGUISHER Frank B. Allen, Towaco, N.3., assignor, by mesne assignments, to The Fyr-Fyter Company, Dayton,Oino, a corporation of Ohio Application October 21, 1952, Serial No.316,026

1 Claim. (Cl. 169-1) The present invention relates to a fireextinguishing apparatus and particularly to a nozzle suitable to controlthe flow of a dry powder fire extinguishing agent.

It is important in a nozzle of this type that it be so designed as toallow the free flow of the fire extinguishing powder. It is alsoimportant that the valve member be so designed that the powder will notpile up and tend to block the discharge. Further, the valve member andits seat should be arranged as to be self-cleaning so that in the eventany powder is deposited thereon during the discharge it will beautomatically cleaned as the valve returns to its seat. Still further,the valve member should provide a good seal with its seat so as toprevent the entry of moisture into the powder container such as mayresult from temperature changes. In addition, it is desirable that theconstruction embody a valve operating means which is easily handled andwhich is compact in form.

The present invention aims to provide a nozzle for a fire extinguisherincorporating the foregoing requirements and which is simple andeconomical in manufacture, efiicient in operation and durable in use.

In accordance with the invention these objects are accomplished byproviding a nozzle having an inclined valve chamber intersecting theinlet and outlet passages and incorporating a valve member ofcylindrical shape having a valve seating material at its inner end forengagement with the valve seat.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description and from the accompanying drawings which show, byway of example, an embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a dry powder fire extinguisherequipped with a nozzle in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged side view of the nozzle in accordance with theinvention.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view of the nozzle shown in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a top view of the nozzle shown in Figure 2.

Figure 5 is an end view of the nozzle shown in Figure 2.

Referring to the drawings there is shown a fire extinguisher 1 having ahose line 2 terminating in a nozzle 3 in accordance with the invention.The fire extinguisher may be of the customary type retaining therein acharge of dry powder together with a charge of compressed gas which maybe released to expel the powder by inverting the extinguisher andstriking the top thereof against a surface, such as the ground. Thepowder is expelled by the gas charge through the hose 2 and may beintermittently discharged from the nozzle 3 as desired.

The nozzle 3 comprises a casing 4 having a horizontally extending inletpassage 5, an inclined valve chamber 6 and a discharge outlet passage 7.The cylindrical valve member 9 is reciprocable in the valve chamber 6toclose the outlet passage 7 and is actuated by means of a squeeze griptype operating handle 10 pivotally carried by the States Patent housingand normally urged into the closed position by resilient means, such asthe spring 11.

The nozzle casing 4 may be made of any suitable material, such as metalor plastic and has an enlarged portion 12 at the end of its inletpassage formed with a threaded inner surface 14 for connection to thehose 2. The other end of the inlet passage 5 is turned upwardly asindicated at 15 to intersect the valve chamber 6 which is formed withits lower end sloping toward the discharge passage 7 so as to cooperatewith the inlet passage 5 to provide a free flow passage for the powder.It is preferred that the valve chamber have a somewhat enlarged portionas indicated at 16 so as to facilitate the fiow of the powder about thevalve member 9 when the valve is in the opened position.

About the lower end of the valve chamber 6 is a valve seat 17 positionedat the lower side of the intersection of the upwardly turned end 15 ofthe inlet passage 5. The valve seat surface is sharply beveled toprovide an angle of approximately forty-five degrees with axis of thevalve chamber. The upper end of the valve chamber 6 is enlarged andthreaded as indicated at 18 to receive a bushing nut 19. A recess 20 isformed in the lower end of the bushing nut 19 to receive an O-ringgasket 21 to provide a seal against leakage past the upper end of thevalve member 9. If desired, the lower edge of the bushing nut 19 may beturned in to hold the O-ring in position in a unitary assembly.

The valve member 9 is cylindrical in shape and has its lower end shapedto receive valve seating material. Preferably, the valve member 9 hasits lower end 22 extended and reduced in diameter and made with a groove23 to hold valve seating material or packing 24 in position. The valvepacking 24 is made of any suitable resilient material such as rubber ornylon to provide a good seal with the valve seat 17. The outer end ofthe valve member 9 is formed with an annular reduced portion 25 forengagement with U-shaped end 26 of the grip handle 10.

The casing 4 is apertured and fitted with a pin 27 for the pivotalmounting of the grip handle 10. The casing also has an upwardly andforwardly extending projection 28 adapted to maintain in position thelower end of the spring 11.

The grip handle it) is generally of channel cross-section and has itsvalve engaging end turned downwardly and inwardly, it being slotted asindicated at 29 to receive the reduced portion 25 of the valve operatingmember 9. The lower surface of the grip handle 10 has a downwardly andrearwardly extending portion 30 oppositely positioned to the projection28 of the casing 4 so as to provide means for the engagement of the endsof the spring 11 therebetween. The outer end 31 of the grip handle 14 isgiven a hand conforming shape so that the nozzle may be readily carriedby engaging the fingers about the valve casing 4, the valve beingoperated by squeezing the grip handle 10 with the palm of the same hand.

In certain forms or" the construction it is preferred that the outletpassage 7 be equipped with a difiusion member 32 so as to straighten outthe flow of the powder and provide a mere equally distributed discharge.The rate of discharge of the extinguisher may be predetermined by thesize of orifices in the difiusion member. The diffusion member 32 isformed with a circular outer end 34 adapted to be secured in thedischarge passage 7 by a set screw 35, the inner end 36 of the diffusionmember being generally cone-shaped, orifices 37 and 38 of the desiredsize being provided on the face of the coneshaped portion.

The nozzle is operated by depressing the grip handle 10 to raise thevalve member 9 in the valve chamber 6 and permit the flow of the drypowder and its expulsion gas past the valve seat 17. The mixture of gasand powder then flows through the orifices of the difiusion member 32where it is discharged from the end 'of the outlet passage 7. Aspressure is released on the grip handle 10, the spring, 11 urges theouter end of the handle upwardly causing the valve member 9 tobereturned to the closed position cutting ofi the flow of gas and powder,and as the valve packing 24 engages the beveled surface of the valveseat 17, the valve seat is cleared of powder.

This application is a continuation-in-part of a joint application,Serial No. 74,355, filed February 3, 1949, now abandoned, by Frank B.Allen, the inventor herein, and Norman, H. .Siebens. 7

While the invention has been described and illustrated with reference tospecific embodiments thereof, it will be understood that otherembodiments may be resorted to without departing from the invention.Therefore, the form of the invention set out above should 'be consideredas illustrative and not as limiting the scope of the 'following' claim.

I claim:

A shutoff nozzle for a dry powder fire extinguisher comprising aone-piece housing generally tubular in shape, the housing having apassage therethrough, one end of the passage being the inlet end, theother end of the passage being the outlet end, the inlet and outlet endssubstantially in axial alignment, the inner portions of the gripoperating handle, an upwardly directed extension on the housingpositioned reanvardly of the pivotal mounting means, a coiled springpositioned to receive the housing extension within one end and thehandle extension within the other end, the .end of the outlet ofenlarged diameter, a diffusion memberpositioned in the outlet,

'both ends of the valve member grooved, the upper groove adapted to bereceived in the slotted end of the squeeze grip handle, and valveseating material molded over the other end of the valve member andengaged in the lower groove.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,195,811 Brarnsen Apr. 2, 1940 2,484,943 Guise et a1. Oct. 18, 1949Allen Mar. 18, 1952

